Why BLUE and not green economy?

Blue is the new Green. 

Why BLUE economy?

¿Por qué se llama la economía AZUL?

Pourquoi l'économie BLEUE?

Por que se chama economia AZUL?

Join the movement. #BlueEconomy

Еко колите: мит или реалност?

Тhe article is available in English.

Колите, задвижвани от бензин, са основната причина за замърсяването на въздуха (въглероден оксид, азотни оксиди и въглеводороди). Впоследствие , това води до глобално затопляне (парников ефект). Поради токсичността на бензина към околната среда и недостига му,което води до постоянно увеличение на цената му , се увличава и интересът на фирмите към алтернативни на бензина горива.

Първата алтернатива на бензиновите автомобили са електрическите. През 90-те години на миналия век, Toyota създава Prius - хибриден автомобил (работи с електричество и бензин). От 2000 г. фирмите започват да инвестират  както в хобридни, така и в напълно електрически автомобили. Постигнат е огромен напредък, но голяма пречка е неспособността на електрическите автомобили да изминат дълги разстояния. От друга страна, инфраструктурата за електрическите автомобили все още не е добре развита, а в много страни дори не съществува. Друга негативна страна е, че за производството на електроенергия се използват най-вече въглища или природен газ. Това означава, че не се отделя въглероден окис, а въглероден двуокис, който също е оставил отпечатък върху нашата скъпа Земя. Това видео си заслужава гледането. В 5 минути то обяснява защо електрическите  автомобили не са толкова зелени, колкото си мислим:

Големият въпрос е: “Ще бъде ли някога възможно създаването на напълно “синя технология” за производството на автомобили?”

Друг заместител на петрола е технологията за водородни горивни клетки или превозни средства, задвижвани с водород. Как работи? Водородът бива смесен с кислород в двигателя и при изгарянето на тази смес се отделя електричество.

Въпреки че водородът е 100% безвреден, за процеса, описан по-горе, е нужно голямо количество вода и електричество, или реформиране на изкопаеми горива. Компаниите все още добиват водород като го извличат от петрола и природния газ, така че ако искат да бъдат напълно зелени, те трябва да започнат да изполват вода и електричество.

Важно е обаче, че за да имаме наистина устойчива енергия , е нужно използването на 100% възобновяеми източници (вятър и вода). 

Някои страни (Швейцария) вече имплементират или планират скоро да  имплементират (САЩ) автомобили, задвижвани от водород. Очаква се тази тенденция да се затвърди следващите години.

Thor, the New Digger of Energy !

This is what comes to your mind right?

Well sorry fellas, in this case we are not talking about the superhero (though it might be considered as if) but about the rig in Iceland, named by the IDDP (Iceland Deep Drilling Project) after Thor, that is drilling into magma. The project started in 2009, when IDDP accidentally ran into magma while digging for high temperature geothermal resources that it used to produce energy. 

Geothermal water plants are used to generate power through a process of transformation. 

This video explain the process

Skip to 1:30 until 2:24

When reaching magma, the temperature can go from 1,652 degree and reach 1,832 degree which allows to produce up to five time more electricity than normal geothermal well (around 5 to 8MW of electricity). This could powered 50,000 homes ! 

This project, if successful, could be a really powerful source of green energy.

Félicitations consommateurs de bière ! Vous participez à créer un monde meilleur !

Vous en consommez régulièrement, toutes les raisons sont bonnes pour une bière et vous ne savez même plus combien vous en avez goûté dans votre vie tellement vous en avez essayer? Vous pouvez même dire que vous êtes un expert en la matière? Et bien, vous ne savez pas tout ...

Tout d'abord, pour mieux comprendre cet article, vous pouvez voir sur l'image les étapes de fabrication de la bière (pour les connaisseurs sautez cette étape) >>>

Les ingrédients pour le brassage sont composés de:

1. Eau (de très bonne qualité)
2. Levure
3. Houblon
4. Malt

Lors de la création de la bière, des flux de déchets organiques sont crées et une grande quantité d'énergie est consommée. Les déchets organiques n'ont pas d'effets nocifs pour l'environment parcontre la quantité d'eau utilisée, 20 litres d'eau pour seulement 1 litre de bière, devient un problème pour l'environment (à l'encontre d'une croissance durable) surtout qu'elle n'est pas recyclée mais gaspillée.

Ce qui est aussi dommage, c'est de jeter les déchets organiques (provenant du malt et houblon) étant donné que les nutriments et protéines contenus dedans sont pratiquement intactes. 

La question est "Que peut-on faire avec ces déchets?"

La fondation ZERI s'est penchée sur la question et a innovée avec un système en circuit fermé qui permet de récupérer l'eau inutilisée pour la production de bière. 

Premièrement, la machine récolte les déchets et utilise le substrat naturel (provenant des plantes) propice au development de bactéries/de petits champignons. Ces champignons sont alors utilisés pour nourrir les cochons. Mais ces déchets sont aussi un excellent substitut pour la farine utilisé pour le pain ! On peut donc créer du pain avec les restes, et oui !

Deuxièment (la partie la plus intéressante), après utilisation des champignons pour nourrir le bétail, les déchets animals peuvent être récupérés pour être stockés dans un contenaire avec l'eau recyclée. Ce mélange va créer:

1. du biogaz (composé essentiellement de méthane et de dioxide de carbone) qui peut être utilisé comme source d'énergie à la production de bière ou peut être vendu à d'autres entreprises. 
2. une solution nutritive qui va être utilisée dans un bassin d'algues, et ou ceci vont absorber la solution par photo-synthèse et vont se multiplier. Ces algues seront alors utilisées comme nourriture pour poisson. 

Le contenaire (ou tank) peut être vu comme un digesteur herméthique à l'air qui permet donc un milieu anaérobie (absence d'oxygène). Les bactéries dans un milieu anaérobie sont beaucoup plus actives que dans un milieu aérobie et permettent de convertir 60% des déchets organiques présents dans l'eau en nutriments en 5-6 jours.

Voici une courte vidéo pour comprendre l'utilité des digesteurs à biogaz

En conclusion, en produisant de la bière nous pouvons produire du pain, de la nourriture pour le bétail et les poissons et, de l'énergie ! 

Qu'est-ce que vous attendez pour aller prendre une bière et aider notre planète? Tous à vos bières !

Attention: L'albus d'alcool est dangereux pour la santé, à consommer avec modération.

Любителите на бира подобряват света!

Тhe article is available in English and  français.

Много от вас я пият, много от вас я използват като повод да се съберат с приятели и много от вас смятат себе си за експерти на тази тема. Но със сигурност не много от вас знаят магическата сила, която притежава бирата...

За да разберем по-добре статията, нека започнем с производствения процес на една традиционна бирена пивоварна:

Основните съставки за производството на бира обикновено са:

1. Вода.
2. Ферментирала захар.
3. Хмел.
4. Дрожди (едноклетъчни гъби, които предизвикват алкохолна ферментация).

Пивоварната отделя органични отпадъци и използва огромно количеств оенергия. Тъй като отпадъците на пивоварната са от органична материя, техният замърсяващ ефект често се разглежда като минимален. Тези органични отпадъци обаче се превръщат в проблем поради количеството вода, необходимо за големите обеми бира, произведена от днешните пивоварни (повечеот 20 литра вода за литър бира).

Освен вода, заводите похабяват множество хранителни вещества и протеин, съдържащи се в зърната на хмела в процеса на пивоварството. Малък процент от тези хранителни вещества се използва в процеса и протеинът остава незасегнат в бирените джибри след процеса.

Как можем да променим това?

Чрез напълно иновативна система, която решава този проблем, проектирана от Зери (Zeri). Систамата представлява затворен цикъл, който репликира една екосистема.

На първо място, тя се възползва от хранителните вещества, останали в употребеното зърно, за да се създаде субстрат, който се използва за отглеждането на гъби. Как може да използваме тези гъби? Като храна за свине! Друга част от употребеното зърно може дори да се използва за направата на брашно за хляб.

Но нека обърнем внимание на по-интересната част-как чрез обработката в биореактор-от отпадъците от свине и отпадъчните води от пивоварната може да се създаде:

1. Биогаз, който да се използва като източник на енергия в пивоварната или да бъде продаден на друг потребител като компания.
2. Хранителен разтвор, който може да се използва в плитки басейни за увеличаване броя на водораслите, които след това се използват за храна на риба.

Биореакторът представлява контейнер, в който не може да проникне въздух, с цел създаване на анаеробни (без кислородни)храносмилателни условия. Анаеробните бактерии са по-активни от аеробните (кислородни) бактерии, които са налични в обичайните аеробни водоеми или септични ями. Те могат да преобразуват 60% от органичната материя, намираща се в отпадъчните води, в хранителни вещества в период от5 до 6 дни.

Биореакторът произвежда голямо количество отпадъчни води с излишък на биогаз (СО2 + СН4) или метан газ, който може да се използва като източник на енергия.

Така че, от сега не е необходимо да търсите извинение да изпиете по една бира с приятели... Честито, любители на бира! Просто се грижите за вашата планета, нали?

Happy (sustainable) Thanksgiving !

Hello everybody! 

Today it's Thanksgiving and for once, we won't talk about new technology but we just would like to remind you that in every occasion we can act for our planet. 

Most of you had already planned to travel in order to spend that moment with your beloved ones or prepared the feast for tonight, yummy !

We wish you the best Thanksgiving ever and would like to remind you to stay green and avoid Turkey as it is genetically modified food. Our collegues from Environminds wrote a really nice post on it two days ago explaining why you should not buy a big fat turkey so, you can read it there.

You might also want to take a look at that 40 secondes lasting video

Convinced?
Happy Thanksgiving!!

Zeri: The Most Innovative Global Network

"When they tell me I'm crazy, it's an honor."-Gunter Pauli.

After some posts about the Blue Economy, it is time to pause and recap about what are we posting here. But we can´t do that without the help of our main engine and source of inspiration...ZERI (Zero Emissions Research and Initiatives).

History.

Zeri was created in 1994 by Gunter Pauli under the guidance of Prof. Dr. Heitor Gurgulino de Souza, then Rector of the UNU, in response to the need to translate ideas, visions and scientific knowledge into concrete projects.

Since then, they have been developing projects, spreading the word of Blue Economy all around the world through conferences and presentations (2000: Expo in Hannover, 2004: at ONU congress in Tokio, 2009: Club Rome general assembly in Amsterdam, 2014: world congress in Madrid, 2015: in New Delhi, in Tokio and Indonesia).

What is Zeri?

Behind this strange and "zen" name, it hides global network of creative minds,  that are constantly seeking innovative solutions to the main problems of the world. They start from scratch with science based ideas linking communities with corporations.

Their ideas turn into projects that seek to provide sustainable solutions for society, as well as practical and affordable. This is because most of them they are implemented in poor areas or under-develop countries which need the help of outsiders but the scarcity of economic resources prevents them to develop.

One of the keys for the achievement of this goals is the use of natural resources combined with science to get the most out of them.

Currently, there are more than 60 projects being developed and more than 100 ideas waiting to be implemented as well. There projects, as we have been posting in this blog, are very diverse, from water to food, housing, healthcare, jobs, energy and education. 

Science behind Zeri.

Zeri's ideas come from different areas and the application of technology to them. From biology to architecture, from arts to economics...always enhancing the environment at the same time.

Five Kingdoms of Nature: Inspired by the work of Dr. Lynn Margulis, ZERI methodology is based on the harmony and interaction demonstrated amongst these five different domains of Life. 

Five Design Principles: framework for emulating nature as we consciously co-participate in the evolution of our planet.

Five Intelligences: ZERI embraces the different ways of learning and expressing and offers an educational approach that encourages integration of these complementary aspects of learning.

Twelve Axioms of Economics: ZERI's framework for integrated strategic thinking, guiding how we make day-to-day business decisions that add value, create opportunity to differentiate and develop a cohesive company identity.

How the Blue economy is inspired by whales, according to Gunter Pauli...

...or how it is inspired by penguins....

This movement is here to stay, so open your mind, get creative and help Zeri to continue making the world a better place!

Wireless Waste Collection

For decades, waste management has followed the same rule: Waste is collected on a regular schedule. However, this causes unnecessary costs, poor equipment utilization, and excessive emissions.

Fortunately, there is new technology available smoothing the whole aforementioned process. 

The four main direct advantages of applying technology to rationalize the waste collection process are:

• optimized collection routes
• full containers collection 
• dynamic routes for garbage trucks
• improved planning due to real time information

According to the Finnish smart waste management firm Enevo, this service can achieve a 60% reduction of operational costs.

Optimized Collection Routes

Connected waste containers are equipped with sensors that use ultrasound or other technologies to measure the waste level of a specific garbage can. This data is sent to the central waste management system so they can design collection routes based on container levels. 

Full Containers Collection

The sensors in each garbage can be programed until which percentage it is considered full, for instance. After the management system has defined which containers have passed a certain percentage, the garbage cans can subsequently be collected. 

Dynamic Routes for Garbage Trucks

With the list of containers that require collection the system creates optimized collection routes, taking into consideration the available garbage trucks.

Improved Planning Due to Real Time Information

Big Data adds useful and additional information to the waste management systems such as car accidents, traffic conditions, etc. Thus the adaption of routes to real-time events ensures that the service is carried out more efficiently. 

Bottom line: The smart waste collection saves time, money, and fuel and more importantly reduces CO2 emissions. 

In addition, the sensor consumes very little power, and the battery of the sensors last up to ten years, making it not only an energy-saving but also a durable solution.

The 'Zero-Water' Plant

Water is becoming more and more fragile resource. The amount of water per person has been declining gradually in Mexico and around the world over the period of 60 years, mainly due to the growth in population. The west-central region of Jalisco, Mexico is known to be water-stressed and thus the drinking water was proven to contain the poisonous arsenic.

In 2014, Nestlé upgraded its Mexican factory to ‘zero water’ by extracting some of the water from cow's milk. 

Why cow’s milk exactly? Because it consists of 88% water.

This turned the plant into the first ‘zero water’ factory in the world. Such process enables 6400 local people to have their daily amount of water and prevents water withdrawals.

What the technology behind it looks like? 

The process illustrated on the diagram above reduces up to 15% of total water necessary for Nestlé Mexico and is very similar to the process of reverse osmosis.

It eliminated the need to extract groundwater for operations and it could also be used for watering gardens and cleaning.

The factory produces daily a total of 1.4 million liters of fresh milk, from which Nestlé is able to get 1 million liters of water. Around 60% of the final amount can be recycled and reused. 

A process that saves both water resources and brings future economic benefits. But two years have passed and no other multinational company has followed Nestlé’s example…

Since companies are investing in sustainability (either because of environmental concern or public image), Nestlé has been working on other initiatives too. It has achieved zero-waste-to-landfill in its larges UK factory, in Newcastle through installing anaerobic digester. The company in undertaking over 150 other initiatives currently, but all of them look like separate projects. And it is not only Nestlé that is in such situation, every big MNC could be unable to achieve coordination. 

The adoption of internet of things (IoT) and big date, similar to P&G, could make the process circular and flowing. It could connect every company division (financing, marketing, manufacturing, sustainability) to every factory, regional HQ, supplier or client. Thus, cost reduction, quality, innovation and sustainability could not be looked as separate factors but as one co-functioning core

Beer drinkers: Improving the world!

The article is available to read in français and български.

Many of you drink it, many of you gather with your friends around it and many of you will consider yourselves as experts on this beverage. But for sure, not many of you know the magic power that beer has...

First of all, and for a better understanding of the article, lets see how a traditional beer brewery works:

A traditional beer brewery brings (in a very basic level):

1. Water.
2. Fermented sugar.
3. Hops.
4. Yeast.

The brewery produces organic waste streams and lost energy. This waste from the brewery is organic material which means that its polluting effect could be seen as minimal. However, given the quantity of water needed for the large volumes of beer produced by today´s breweries (up to more than 20 liters of water per liter of brewed beer), this organic waste is a problem.

It is also a waste considering the amount nutrients and protein used from grains in the beer-brewering process. A small percentage of the nutrients are used and the protein is left untouched in the spent grains after the process.

What can we do about it?

The totally innovative system that solves this problem that is designed by Zeri is a closed-loop system, which mimics an ecosystem.

First of all, it takes advantage of the nutrients left in the spent grain to create a substrate used to raise mushrooms. What can we do with those mushrooms? It is used to feed pigs! Some of the spent grain can even also be used as flour for bread.

But lets go to the most amazing part, waste from the pigs and waste water from the brewery goes into a digester to create:

1. Biogas to be used as an energy source in the brewery or sold to another user like a company.
2. A nutrient solution that can be used in shallow ponds to raise algae, which are then fed to fish.

The digester is a container where no air can get in, in order to create anaerobic (without oxygen) digestion conditions. Anaerobic bacteria are more active than aerobic (with oxygen) bacteria that are present in the usual aerobic ponds or septic tanks. They are capable of converting 60% of the organic matter in the waste water into nutrients in 5 to 6 days.

A digester produces a superior effluent with the surplus of biogas (CO2+CH4) or methane gas, which can be used as an energy source.

So, now there is no need to find an excuse to go grab a beer... Just taking care of your planet, right?